Weidenfeller: Dortmund want to reach legendary status

The success of the Bundesliga giants 16 years ago has not been forgotten, and Jurgen Klopp's No.1 is hoping that the omens in their favour come good

Borussia Dortmund goalkeeper Roman Weidenfeller wants to the team to make their mark on the history books in Saturday's Champions League final by emulating the club's 1997 victory.

The Schwarzgelben conquered Serie A giants Juventus 3-1 to be crowned European victors despite being underdogs and they are once again not the favoured side ahead of their battle with Bayern Munich at Wembley.

Weidenfeller hopes Jurgen Klopp's men can follow in Ottmar Hitzfeld's charges footsteps this weekend and believes victory would see the team reach the same legendary status, before warning of the threat the Bavarians pose.

"Everyone still speaks today with unbelievable admiration about the '97 team," he told Kicker on Thursday. "Should we now also succeed in lifting the trophy in London, we would probably achieve a similar status.

"But Bayern will be determined to do everything to beat us on Saturday."

Dortmund were beaten 2-1 by Hoffenheim in the final game of the Bundesliga season, though BVB were also beaten 2-1 by Hamburg ahead of the 1997 Champions League final - a comparison that the German goalkeeper hopes will bode well.

"Sure, it's a good omen!," he added. "Again we are the underdogs. Just as it applied to the team of 1997, it applies to us: in one game, anything is possible."

Weidenfeller was adamant that the defensive frailties which have haunted Klopp's side in the Bundesliga - allowing Bayern to romp to success, finishing 25 points above BVB - will not plague them on Saturday in London.

He added: "Unfortunately, we have show bad concentration too often at times this season. We were also not as determined as in the previous season in the league.

"However, in the Champions League we have played very differently. It was clear from the first whistle in every encounter that we have tried our hardest with maximum effort."